Min Familie // Aph Nordics

- Danmark -

Today had been a wild day for Kongeriget Danmark.
He'd started off the day as normal; trekking around Denmark and looking for food. He grew bored quickly and decided to sneak onto a longboat. That's how he ended up in Sweden.
So, Kongeriget Danmark, affectionately known by his people as 'Mathias', 'Evil demon' and 'Spawn of Hel*' wandered around for a while, his spears resting comfortably in his hand. Strapped onto his shoulder was his shield. It was red, and the most important thing Mathias owned. He loved his shield.
A few hours passed and Mathias had only caught a few small rabbits. Feeling a little disappointed, he decided to make his way back to Denmark. That's when he spotted it; a huge, wonderful deer. His mouth watered as he aimed his spear and hurdled it towards the animal. Perfect hit, Mathias! He thought to himself as he ran towards his catch. Another boy was running too, and Mathias froze.
"Hey! That's mine!" He shrieked, "Get away, you thief!"
The other Viking jumped and turned to face Mathias, seemingly startled. When Mathias caught up to him, the boy, sporting a navy blue cape, spoke up.
"No," He shook his head, "It was mine. I hunted it, and I shot it with my spear."
In all honesty, the deepness of the stranger's voice intimidated Mathias, but he hid it and let out an annoyed growl instead, pointing at the spear the other was holding. His spear.
"But that spear you hold in your hand, that is mine! You're lying and-" His words slowed until he fell silent. Lodged in the deer's body was another spear. Pointing at it, he mused, "But that is not my blade."
The boy opposite him rolled his eyes. He was a little taller than Mathias, and his hair was a little darker. His face was soft and Mathias' was rugged. Mathias' sky-blue eyes were open widely but the other's dull sapphire orbs were heavily squinted. His attention turned to the other's expression. He looked mildly irritated, to say the least, but Mathias couldn't tell if he was actually mad or if that was just his face. His screwed up eyes made it hard to tell.
"Yeah." He suddenly answered, catching Mathias off guard, "I know. It's my blade. Like I said, I caught it."
Shaking his head, Mathias twisted his shield to face him. He ran his stick-thin fingers over the patterned wood as he pondered on how to solve this. Looking up to face the Viking, a surge of emotion flowed through his chest. He'd never experienced such a feeling, but he liked it. Mathias never seen this Viking in his life, and even now he was trying to steal his food, but even still, the Dane liked the person who stood before him. He felt like they were old friends. Could this boy...be like him? Was this the infamous Kongeriket Sverige? The boy he'd dreamed of meeting and befriending? It couldn't be.
"Do you...feel it too...?" Mathias started, looking straight into the Swedish boy's eyes, "A tingly sort of feeling, right in your heart. It's a nice feeling. Although I've never had one of my own, it reminds me of what a home is."
The boy gasped and nodded earnestly, "Ja. I do. Does that mean..." In a soft voice he asked, "Do you represent land too?"
Mathias smirked with glee. This dude was Sverige! Mathias instantly decided that he would be best buddies with Sve.
"Yeah! I do! You do too?! That's awesome!" He replied, "I've never met anyone like me! I bet you the humans treat you like crap, don't the-"
The next thing he knew, his mouth was smothered with a firm palm.
Sverige was quick to warm him, "Shut up, or you'll get us both killed! If I remove my hand, will you shut up for two damn seconds?"
Mathias nodded rapidly, his breathing shallowing. He hates being touched. Luckily, Sve didn't hesitate to let him go.
"Yes," he answered quietly, "I am like you. And yes, I am usually treated badly. Are you?"
"Oh, ja." Mathias answered, feeling his face tug into a frown, "They hurt me, a lot. They...they think we are going to join the giants, I mean, when Ragnarök begins, and that we're just like Loki, that we help only when it benefits us. They beat me, and kick me, and sometimes they throw me in the cold rivers."
Violent images flooded Mathias' mind and his hands began to shake. It was almost like he was there again, hands and feet bloody and bound, his mouth gagged and teeth clenched. He could feel the icy cold water swirling around him, suffocating him.
"Anyway," He suddenly spluttered, forcing his face into a cheery smile, "I represent Denmark! I'm guessing you represent Sweden, right? I mean, were in Sweden so-"
"Yeah. I do represent Sweden." Sverige answered. Then, Mathias had an epiphany. He pondered on said epiphany for a while. After a good ten minutes, he smiled in conclusion. "Right, so, Sweden-"
"Call me Berwald." Berwald intervened
With a sheepish chuckle, the Dane continued, "Oh, yeah, Berwald - I'm Mathias by the way - how about this; we share the deer, and team up. It'll be easier if we work together! What do you say, huh?"
Mathias waited whilst Berwald stood rigid, clearly absorbed with making a decision. Mathias awkwardly shuffled. Clenched fists met tense thighs. He hoped Berwald said yes. He didn't want to be alone. He wanted somebody who he could talk to and have fun with. He wanted a friend.
Berwald huffed and a small smile grew on his face, "Yes."
And that's how Mathias ended up wandering all the way to Norway with a brand new friend.
"Y'know," Mathias commented, "I have to admit; this place is beautiful."
Berwald hummed in agreement. Berwald didn't say much, but that's okay. Mathias' chattiness was enough for both of them.
As they ventured deeper into a Norwegian forest that they'd stumbled across, they began to hear howls and growls. Closer, and they could hear screams and shouts of angry men. Mathias spotted them, a whole crowd of aggressive, fire yielding men, with angry faces. He pointed them out to Berwald. As they approached his blood ran cold and he froze in place. They were going to burn him alive. He couldn't move. They're back. They found him. They're going to kill him. Strong arms grabbed him from behind and ragged him away. His sense of reality returned and he looked up. It was Berwald who had grabbed him. Thank God.
"Mathias," He hissed, "Can you climb trees?" It's not like he gave Mathias any time to reply, as he was already scaling a huge tree. Luckily, Mathias considered himself a pro at tree-climber. Following closely behind Berwald, he refused to relax, even when they were at the top, well out of sight.
Berwald glanced over at him, "They've hurt you bad, huh?"
Mathias looked down at his shaking hands and nodded. There was a moment of awkward silence before Berwald cautiously wrapped an arm around his new acquaintance's shoulders.
"I'm sorry to hear that."
Mathias shrugged, "It's fine, I'm used to it. But sometimes I remember it and get all sha-"
"Oh my god, is that a kid?" Berwald interrupted. Mathias followed his friends pointed finger and saw that, indeed, a small child was running, a few feet away from the men.
"Oh my god." Mathias repeated. He eyed Berwald cautiously and stared down again. In awe, he watched as the child, who looked only a year or two younger than Mathias and Berwald, scramble up a tree at an astonishing speed. Even wilder, he began to jump from tree to tree in an attempt to escape his pursuers.
"Quick, let's follow him." Berwald decided, skilfully jumping to a tree a few feet away from Mathias. They were on opposite sides of the men and Mathias felt alone again. They followed - slowly - the general direction of the kid, constantly checking that the other was okay. Looking around, he yelped in horror as he saw a branch snap under the child's weight and could do nothing but watch as he fell to the ground, letting out a pitiful screech.
"Berwald!" Mathias yelled, "He fell!"
Huffing, Berwald snapped, "Yeah, I can see that." Despite the gruff attitude, his face was twisted as though he could feel the pain.
Mathias remarked, "Oh crap, we've gotta do something, Sve - Berwald."
Next to him, Berwald unsheathed a sword from under his cloak and turned to Mathias, "Do you have a weapon? Or do you just have those spears?"
Mathias huffed and from under his cloak, he drew an axe. It was large, but so was Mathias, and he could handle it with ease. "Well, I've got this bad boy!" He bragged, a smug grin on his face.
They spent a few moments formulating a plot and scaling halfway down the tree. Then, the moment they saw the dogs nipping at the boy's skin, they lunged from their hiding places, landing either side of the pack of dogs. Mathias kicked the snout of a nearby elkhound before attacking the rest with his axe. Most of them cowered and ran away, but a few persistent ones stayed, and were subsequently killed. Looking up, he asked, "You doing okay, Ber?"
"It's Berwald. And I'm fine." Came a gruff reply. Just as Berwald was finishing off the last of the men, he yelled.
"Oi, get the kid. He's one of us."
Mathias, who had just succeeded in killing a final, gruesome elkhound, smiled softly. He thought the sensation in his heart was adrenaline. He was wrong.
One look at the boy and his heart sank. The poor thing was out cold. Wet patches of sweat and tears trickled down his face and onto his bony, frail hands that were a shocking blue, just like his thin lips and the huge bruises that loitered his pasty white skin. Although he seemed to be around Mathias' age, if not a bit younger, he was extremely puny and thin. His elbows and shoulder blades jutted out at funny angles because his weight and Mathias cringed, comparing the boy's - who he guessed represented Norway - paper thin wrists to his own thick and burly ones. He then turned to Norway-boy's leg, the one he'd landed on, and began to inspect it. To his relief it didn't look broken, or even fractured. He'd probably just sprained it. Awkwardly, he pulled the boy into his arms and turned to Berwald.
"Let's find somewhere to take him, hm?"
Berwald nodded and turned away, "I'll take you to my place. Granted it's tiny, but it'll do, right?"
Looking down at the boy's chest that steadily raised with each breath, he answered, "Of course."

* Hel - Referring to the Norse goddesses Hel, the goddess of death and ruler of the underworld.